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Thursday, April 30, 2015

I enjoyed the first Love Inspired book I reviewed for the series, so when I was given the opportunity to review more of their books, I was very happy. Each month, the Love Inspired series releases 6 books, only available for purchase during that month.

These would make perfect Mother's Day gifts for special women in your life who enjoy reading wholesome and inspiring love stories.

I enjoyed each of these six books, all of them heartwarming stories. My favorite in this set are "The Doctor's Second Chance" and "The Rancher Takes a Bride". I love that the common themes in this set include hope, faith, redemption and forgiveness.

For more information on the Love Inspired monthly book series, you can visit the site here.

Giveaway:One of you will win a box set of the 6 books in the May 2015 collection. To enter, please leave a comment below to let me know you would like to win. Giveaway closes Friday, May 2 at Noon EST.If you are not able to leave a comment on this blog post, please e-mail me at angelaskitchen@rocketmail.com with "Giveaway Entry" in the subject line and that will count as your entry.

Disclosure (in accordance with the FTC’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”): Many thanks to Propeller Consulting, LLC for providing this prize for the giveaway. Choice of winners and opinions are 100% my own and NOT influenced by monetary compensation. I did receive a sample of the product in exchange for this review and post.Only one entrant per mailing address, per giveaway. If you have won a prize from our sponsor Propeller / FlyBy Promotions in the last 30 days, you are not eligible to win. If you have won the same prize on another blog, you are not eligible to win it again. Winner is subject to eligibility verification.

I love being a Hallmark blogger because I not only love their cards and other products, but also what they stand for as a company. I am a member of a club no one wishes to be a part of, someone who has lost a parent. Mother's Day coming around on the calendar was always a wonderfully special day in my household up until 2001 when my mother passed away. My memories of the first few Mother's Days without her are excruciating. It was a day that had meant so much, and that was forever changed for me by life's circumstances. In the 14 that have passed since, I have come to try my best to make it a day to celebrate as many of the special women in my life that I can. I still feel the same pang in my heart when I see the Mother's Day card display in whatever store I happen to be in, as I felt on that first without her.She was and is my hero in life. Here we are in 1997 on a special trip to celebrate my college graduation at the Garth Brooks concert in Tulsa.

I am vocal that the fact I no longer have my mother in this life does not mean I do not celebrate this holiday with the same fervor and sentiment that I did in the 26 years I celebrated it alongside her as Jan's daughter. When I was given the opportunity to participate in Hallmark's 2015 Mother's Day #PutYourHeartToPaper campaign, I was very happy to accept. heart emoticon

I received a selection of their newest card designs for Mother's Day to share with special women in my life. These designs have taken my breath away with their beauty and unique spirit. They are not geared toward what some card companies tend to do, for "the mother", but geared toward reflecting all kinds, and all numbers not just counting as one, of special women in a person's life.I love the sweet sentiment paired with the fun design of this Grandma card. It brings to mind my beloved late maternal grandmother, Grandma Cleva because she truly encompassed the words on this card.

As a coffee lover, I am so taken with the unique spirit of this card that comes with a beautiful detachable coffee sleeve.

This card comes with a wooden necklace with a fantastically fun design.

I love the traditional design of this card paired with elegant details.

I will be sending this fun expectant mother card to one of the moms-to-be in my life.

The foodie in me loves this fun kitchen mixer design and sentiment.

I am such a glitter fan and I think the pink glitter detail of this card is just as amazing as the card's sentiment.

I love this Hallmark video from their #PutYourHeartToPaper campaign with grateful daughters sharing their love for their mother.

Thanks to Hallmark, one of you will win a 5 card pack of their Mother's Day cards to share with those you love. To enter, please leave a comment below to let me know you would like to win. Giveaway closes Friday, May 1 at Noon EST. If you are not able to leave a comment on this blog post, please e-mail me at angelaskitchen@rocketmail.com with "Giveaway Entry" in the subject line and that will count as your entry.Disclaimer: Hallmark provided me with 10 greeting cards for the purpose of my honest review and a 5 card giveaway set. All opinions expressed in this blog post are my own.

Monday, April 20, 2015

Disclaimer: This blog post is sponsored by Global Influence. All opinions in this blog post are my own.

At the age of 40, I consider myself very fortunate to receive compliments on my hair. For me, it is a combination of a trusted at-home care regiman and routinely trusted hairstylists for care maintenance.

With the arrival of spring, I love to change my hairstyle with the season and add a special flair for warmer weather. Here is how I styled my hair for Easter Sunday.

I'm a firm believer in using a styling regiman with a specialized shampoo, conditioner and finishing with a styling product. With each year that passes, making sure to use hair products with quality ingredients become more and more important to me. Getting a salon quality of products for my regular use at home is important to me.
I was happy to learn that Nexxus New York Salon Care has re-introduced their Therappe Shampoo and Humectress Conditioner, available at CVS and the products have a caviar complex. Brand new to the line is an Encapsulate Serum to finish the regiman.
A caviar experience for my hair? Yes, please! I love that the care regimen is enriched with 100% Elastin protein and the Caviar Complex, designed to rebalance, restore, and replenish hair.Concentrated protein. Precious Ingredients. For Hair With Beautiful Fluidity. Those are attributes that immediately caught my attention.

From 3/29/15-4/26/15, you can stop in to your local CVS and receive a $1 off coupon, while supplies last, for any one product from Nexxus NewYork Salon Care (excludes trial and travel sizes).

CVS Beauty consultants will be available to meet with you and help you determine the Nexxus style regiman that is right for you. You can locate a CVS store near you here where you can get started on finding the right Nexxus product for you!
Disclaimer: This blog post is sponsored by Global Influence. All opinions in this blog post are my own.

Thursday, April 16, 2015

In our world today, forgiveness and redemption are two things which can sometimes be seen as in short supply. I was given the opportunity to view a DVD that centers around these two subjects and is based on The Ten Commandments.

According to the Dove Foundation, who gave this movie their family-approved seal, the film tells the story of Detective Bill Broadly, who lost his faith years ago, is called to investigate the disappearance of the local church’s collection plate. As he questions its various church members, rumors swirl as more congregants learn about the theft. When one unexpected church-goer confesses to stealing the funds, the confession resurrects Broadly’s views about God, and helps him see that through faith and belief there really is rebirth and redemption.I enjoyed this DVD and love coming across films in the inspirational genre that illustrate a powerful message, such as this one. I thought the acting was very well done and the story well-written. It has a very profound message that impacted me.You can purchase a copy of the DVD at Walmart stores and through Walmart's website here.One of you will win your own "Grace of God" DVD. To enter, leave a comment below and let me know you would like to win this DVD. Giveaway closes Friday, April 17 at noon EST.Disclosure (in accordance with the FTC’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”): Many thanks to Propeller Consulting, LLC for providing this prize for the giveaway. Choice of winners and opinions are 100% my own and NOT influenced by monetary compensation. I did receive a sample of the product in exchange for this review and post.Only one entrant per mailing address, per giveaway. If you have won a prize from our sponsor Propeller / FlyBy Promotions in the last 30 days, you are not eligible to win. If you have won the same prize on another blog, you are not eligible to win it again. Winner is subject to eligibility verification.

You can go to the following blogs to see more Mother's Day posts:

You can follow us on Pintabulous Mother's Day Pinterest Board HEREand link up your own Mother's Day posts below on the linky! We will leave this linky open until Mother's Day! We’ll try to pin your posts to our board!

Wednesday, April 8, 2015

Spring's arrival also means the arrival of countless milestone celebrations such as graduations, weddings, baby showers and Mother's Day teas. This makes a tasty, easy and lovely true blue punch to serve for any special occasion.

Thursday, April 2, 2015

A beloved Easter treat, hot cross buns are a popular during Lenten season and a Good Friday tradition to many, including in our household, where I baked them today for our Good Friday breakfast tradition.

The preparation process with the rising of the yeast, mixing and all-around hoop jumping to get the dough just right can leave some frazzled and tired. I use an easy and time-saving shortcut method by using Pillsbury refrigerated cinnamon rolls and make use of candied fruit leftover from making fruitcakes during the Christmas season. My family and I were happy with the results. For the history of hot cross buns, marking crosses on baked goods such as breads and buns dates back to pre-Medieval times and was meant to be a visible sign that the bread was “blessed” and had the power to ward off evil spirits and help the longevity of the bread by stopping it from molding or becoming stale too quickly. One story says hot cross buns origins date to the 12th century when an Anglican monk placed the sign of the cross on the buns to honor Good Friday. I came across a fun old rhyme about hot cross buns that says, "Half for you and half for me, between us two good luck shall be". "Easy Hot Cross Buns" 1 can Pillsbury refrigerated cinnamon rolls with icing1/2 cup candied fruit Egg Wash Glaze: 1 egg1 tablespoon milk Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Prepare egg wash glaze by whisking together one egg and one tablespoon of milk. Set aside. Remove each roll from can and place each on wax paper. Take each roll and gently knead dough together to form a ball of dough. Place each back on wax paper. Make a well in the middle of each ball of dough. Place 1 tablespoon of candied fruit in the middle of each ball of dough. Gently knead candied fruit into each ball of dough just enough to combine candied fruit into dough. Place back on wax paper. Place each one on baking sheet. Coat each with glaze. Bake 8-10 minutes or until golden brown in color. Remove from oven and cool. When cooled, drizzle icing in cross shape on top of each. Enjoy! Disclaimer: This post is not a sponsored post by the Pillsbury company. I was not financially compensated by the Pillsbury company for this blog post. All opinions stated in this blog post are my own.